Zhao Rong and his group deviated slightly from the route and after two days of travel, they arrived at the nearest mountain market called Baiyunjin.

Zhao Rong learned from the map that the dynasty he was currently in was called Dachen, and its king advocated Legalism and governed the country with "severe punishments."

When Zhao Rong passed by several island cities before, most people walking on the streets were cautious in what they said and did, and seldom whispered to each other, for fear of being punished for their words. As for Confucian and other "heterogeneous" books, their sale was banned nationwide. It was said that there had been several nationwide book burnings before. The Legalists in this country were indeed extremely xenophobic.

Zhao Rong frowned. He had been strictly examined for a long time during his previous visits to the city because of his attire as a Confucian scholar. If it weren't for his travel permit and other identification documents, they would not have found any grounds to cause trouble. In addition, there was also a flag of Linlu Academy whose authenticity was unknown, and a conflict would have probably already occurred.

Zhao Rong looked around at the immortal market where the monks all had serious expressions and seemed to have been infected by the atmosphere down the mountain. He then remembered the cruel official with cold eyes at the door when he had just entered Baiyunjin.

It seems that the boundary between the mountain and the bottom of the mountain is more blurred than he had imagined. The number of cultivators who have entered the world is probably much greater than those who have left it. The Legalists of this country even restrict the immortals on the mountain.

I remember that the Chu State where I grew up used to be the only state that respected the Legalists, but it was later reversed by the current state teacher who came from Linlu Academy. However, I heard before I left that the remnants of the Legalists in the court took advantage of the unstable power period when the new emperor ascended the throne to rebound...

Zhao Rong was strolling around Baiyunjin with a confused mind.

Su Xiaoxiao did not go up the mountain. Due to her identity as a demon, it is better to go up the mountain as little as possible. Not to mention that the market on this mountain is supervised by the cruel officials of the Legalists. Once discovered, it may be a troublesome matter. So she was allowed to stay at the foot of the mountain. However, when they parted, the little girl still looked reluctant. Zhao Rong was afraid that she would follow secretly, so he promised to tell her a new Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio in the evening, which calmed her down.

Liu Sanbian separated from him after entering Baiyunjin, saying that he was going to prepare the medicinal materials needed for him to practice the Ascension Realm. According to Brother Sanbian, a martial artist in this realm should "take Kung Fu as the mother, boxing as the foundation, and nourishment as the main thing."

The skill is "The Art of Ants' Ascending to Heaven", the fist is "Carrying the Volume of Mountains", and the next step of nourishment is the medicinal bath, which is what Brother Sanbian needs to prepare now.

Zhao Rong walked aimlessly to a building that looked like a bookstore. He took a look and found that it was a place selling mountain newspapers.

These official bulletins are similar to newspapers in previous lives. They are issued by some well-informed forces, updated frequently, and are one of the main channels for information circulation in the mountains.

The reports on major mountain events in the official newspapers were highly credible, but sometimes they would also publish some hearsay and interesting gossip, such as the suspected birth of spiritual creatures and strange phenomena on a certain fairy mountain, or the evaluation of several stunning fairies on Wangquezhou Mountain, etc. As for whether they were true or false, only the readers could judge for themselves.

Zhao Rong bought a recent and seemingly reliable official newspaper and read it carefully.

The official report said that dozens of countries including Anling and Zhishui were still under blockade, Tianya Sword Pavilion was still pursuing the evil dragon, and the situation was escalating. The current situation was that the entire Wangquezhou Mountain was extremely sensitive to anything related to the demon clan, and anyone who had any connection with the evil dragon was treated as a suspect, and all the demon cultivators on the mountain had to be registered in the case files of the Sikou Mansion to verify their identities and whereabouts over the past few years.

Zhao Rong frowned slightly, feeling that things were not that simple, but he thought it had nothing to do with him from now on, so he stopped thinking about it.

In addition, Su Xiaoxiao was lucky not to go up the mountain, otherwise she would have been caught by the supervisory disciples of the Sikou Mansion and sent back to Qiantang Mountain... Hey, why did I feel a little disappointed when Su Xiaoxiao escaped? Hey, such a stupid little fox demon should not wander around outside.

Zhao Rong moved his gaze downward again.

There are currently two major events on Wangquezhou Mountain that are widely discussed.

In Siqi Academy, one of the two Confucian academies in Wangquezhou, there was a scholar who was given the title of "gentleman" by the Zhongzhou Confucian Temple.

This honor is extremely rare, usually only the headmaster and a few gentlemen in the two academies have it. At present, this scholar is only twenty years old and has just come of age. Such a young talent, if nothing unexpected happens, is almost the designated next headmaster. The head of Siqi Academy is equivalent to half of the literary master of Wangquezhou and is a prominent figure of Confucianism in this continent.

Therefore, this new gentleman was talked about with great interest on Wangquezhou Mountain.

I heard that he used to be unknown, always reading books and burying himself in learning. Now he is famous, but he is neither arrogant nor impatient. In private, he is also an upright gentleman. Not only is he rigorous in his studies, but he is also strict with himself and lenient with others, with noble moral character. Moreover, he has been unmarried and has never set foot in a brothel. Fairies should hurry up... Wait, what's going on below?

Zhao Rong was frowning. He looked at the back and saw that the rest of the report gradually turned into gossip.

What? His mother dreamed of the bright moon entering her arms when she was pregnant with him.

When he was one year old, he grabbed a book of Confucian sages without hesitation.

There were several fairies with both talent and beauty on the mountain who sent him poems. He wrote back seriously, pointing out at length that some of the rhymes in their poems did not conform to the rules of rhythm, and how to correct them so as not to make such low-level mistakes...

How do you know all this?

It seems to be like this everywhere. People are only concerned about interesting gossip rather than the knowledge and opinions of this gentleman.

Zhao Rong shook his head, but as a fellow Confucian scholar, he felt curious about this gentleman, wondering if he had some unique knowledge that would surprise him.

Another major event was that two geniuses from the four prefectures of Taiqing had successfully graduated, one male and one female. The former was named Cheng Lugui, 28 years old, and a fifth-grade golden elixir, and the latter was named Lu Yaoer, 27 years old, and a fourth-grade golden elixir. Both of them had their records engraved on the Taiqing Prodigy Record, and a grand ceremony would be held for the two of them as soon as they graduated to become Taoist couples.

In fact, if it were just the graduation and marriage of two geniuses from the Four Prefectures of Taiqing, it would not be enough to attract such great attention.

What attracted everyone's attention in this matter was the identities of these two people.

One of them is the son of the deputy leader of Xinran Sect, a major sect in the north of Wangque Continent, and he has a prominent status.

Although the other person did not have a noble status, and was even born as the daughter of an unknown hunter in an unknown mountain forest in an unknown small country in the eastern part of Wangque Continent, she was extremely talented and had changed her fate all the way to enter the Four Prefectures of Taiqing. Later, she was also the best among her peers in the Four Prefectures of Taiqing where there were many geniuses. She was also stunningly beautiful and had always been one of the darlings of heaven in the Four Prefectures of Taiqing. She was often listed on various fairy lists in the official bulletin on Wangque Mountain.

Both of them are immortals, with excellent looks and talents, and equal ages and cultivation. Now that they have become Taoist couples, it is indeed what everyone wants in the eyes of the people on the mountain, and it is a wonderful story. It's just a pity for the admirers of Fairy Lu.

Zhao Rong put down the report and thought about it.

Xinran Sect, he had heard of this sect, it was a huge one.

If the entire Wangque Continent is divided into north and south only, and if unconventional sect-like forces such as Tianya Jiange, Taiqing Four Prefectures, and the Two Confucian Academies are not counted, then Xinran Sect and Weiwei Mountain are the two largest immortal sects in the north of Wangque Continent, dividing half of Wangque Continent together. As for the other half of Wangque Continent, there are many forces, but no large sects or schools.

In fact, this is also what Zhao Rong finds quite strange. Are Xinran Sect and Weiwei Mountain just sitting there doing nothing?

But even so, Xinran Sect is still the top force in Wangque Continent, and the deputy leader of this sect must be a big shot in the mountain.

Well, in that case, Fairy Lu is marrying above her station. Is this the alien version of the Phoenix Girl marrying into a wealthy family?

The reason why Zhao Rong thought so much was because it involved the Four Prefectures of Taiqing, where there were people he wanted to meet. And from Xiao Qian'er's tone before, if nothing unexpected happened, they would be able to successfully graduate in the Four Prefectures of Taiqing. It was just a matter of time. Twenty-eight years old was the minimum standard for graduation, and it was unknown how long it would take Qian'er and her.

Zhao Rong pursed his lips and looked down further.

The founder of the Chaoxia Sect traveled abroad for many years and brought back a precocious boy with golden pupils to be trained as his last disciple. It is estimated that the competition for the leader of the sect will become more intense...

The eldest son of the Lanxi Lin family of Zhongnan Kingdom, who had studied in Siqi Academy for many years, now returned home after completing his studies and was ready to fulfill his marriage contract and marry the daughter of Zhongnan Kingdom Master. The two were a perfect match...

Zhao Rong browsed for a while and found that the contents at the end of the court bulletin were all irrelevant to him. The only thing related to him was the list of "Top Ten Young Talents Whom the Fairies on Wangquezhou Mountain Dream of Day and Night". Zhao Rong searched from the top to the bottom of the list with great interest, but did not see any list starting with the word "Zhao".

That’s it?

A vulgar and meaningless list.

The scholar with the sword sneered, threw the official report behind him, and left.